As I drove away from my appointment Thursday afternoon, I was thinking that I could just kick myself.  Or better yet, I thought “I’ll have one of my friends stop by the shop and kick me, yes, that might be more efficient.”  Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t that the meeting didn’t go well, I was just having one of those “I could have had a V8″ moments like in the commercials.  After a few miles, and remembering I still had two other appointments to complete that day, I gave up on the idea.  So why was I wanting to kick myself after such a successful meeting?  I had missed out on the beginning of something good, a great bridal show, and all because I couldn’t find time to pick up a phone.

My friends had been telling me for months about 550 Trackside.  ”Terry, you should go see this place, it’s not finished, but give them a call” my caterer friend advised.  My publisher Linda said, “I just saw this great new venue in Lawrenceville, it’s not open yet but you should check it out.”  That’s just two examples, there were more, but in my mind I heard “not finished” “not open yet” and that combined with a busy season, I forgot to call.  The week before my meeting I had spoke with my catering friend Jet and she said “I’ve got a bridal show to do this Sunday at 550 Trackside, are you going?”  Right then I had to admit to her I had never called.  I won’t cover everything she said here, but she did suggest I call to see if I could attend the show.   As I suspected, the show was full, but the owner was nice enough to invite me over the following week for a tour of the facility.

550 Trackside was originally a cotton warehouse built in 1904.  Over the last 100 years it had been many things, warehouse, industrial office, you-name-it, then finally purchased and renovated by current owner Roger Kahn.  I started my tour with Roger in the Bride’s room.  Tastefully decorated, the Bride’s room has several mirrors, each flanked by antique sconces, can you say “no waiting”?  I found out later each lighting fixture in the building was an antique hand selected by Roger’s wife who is a professional interior designer.  The Bride’s room also has an interesting feature, a second “private bride’s room.”  Need some “quiet time” away from the bride’s maids?  just close the door!  How cool!

From there we moved on to the bathrooms, yes, the tour included those, just wait, it gets good.  The ladies room was first, decorated in a feminine style, it, like the Bride’s room featured beautiful finishes on the walls and antique fixtures.  One thing that did shock me was the impressionist art piece hanging in the ladies room.  I thought it was a reproduction, but no, according to Roger, it’s over 100 years old!  Roger said that they wanted to keep the feel of that period in time for Trackside.  To accomplish this, all fixtures and art where possible are from that period, or mimic the style of that time.  To be honest, I didn’t see many reproductions, and if they were, I couldn’t tell between them and the antiques, the detail was that good!  On to the men’s room!  Same attention to detail, only masculine in style.  There were leaded opaque glass stall doors with transoms, antique light fixtures, and an interesting feature, a harvest table holds the wash basins.  Both bathrooms have too many creative details to list here, you’ll just have to take a tour and see for yourself.

Moving out into the main space, Roger told me about the building and the work that had been done.  The building originally had a second floor level.  That was completely removed to open up the space and let the light in from the existing windows at the top of the structure.  It works well, the space is flooded with light.  This is all clear span space, with plenty of room for tables and guests, it will even accommodate a good sized band.  The walls are made of granite and about two feet thick, in the original parts of the building nothing is done to disguise this.  In the new sections the walls are finely faux finished and trimmed with rich dark wood.  It’s a welcome change from what is seen in most warehouse or industrial conversions where everything is finished to look, well, industrial.  The contrast of fine finish against the stone is an elegant look.  The openings that were once filled with heavy freight doors, now hold custom wood and glass doors, beautiful!  Everywhere I looked there was a detail, a finishing touch, it was easy to see time and attention went into everything.

Planning even went into the caterers serving kitchen.  Roger said, “We interviewed twenty caterers and asked them what they would like to see in a kitchen.”  Apparently the interviews paid off, there is plenty of room, prep sinks, easy load in access, and even a walk-in cooler!  I figure this is a dream to serve from for caterers, getting food out quickly should not be a problem with this kitchen.

This is a beautiful space for a wedding, or wedding reception, it’s well thought out, has plenty of parking, and it’s easy to get to.  If you are getting married in a church near Lawrenceville and need a reception site, or are looking for a place to hold both your wedding and reception, look at 550 Trackside.  The pictures on the web site, as good as they are don’t do the place justice, it’s a in-person must see, make an appointment for a tour today!

The Atlanta Wedding Photographer